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Ozone is a gas which occurs when three oxygen atoms are combined. It exists in the troposphere above earth or at ground level. There are two types of ozone "good " ozone and "bad " ozone. Both types of ozone are harmful to human health. However, ozone at ground level is terribly unhealthy for citizens.
Ozone is formed from three oxygen atoms, in a triangle shape. Another name for ozone is "O3", the number 3 representing the number of oxygen atoms bonded together. A ball-and-stick representation of ozone, or O3, is shown in the graphic at the right.
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The troposphere is a layer which extends approximately 10 miles above the earth's surface. The stratosphere shields the earth from the sun's ultraviolet rays. It extends between 10 to 30 miles above the earths surface. The troposphere also known as ground level ozone is considered bad because the environment is at risk. This bad ozone is largely created by pollution in the air due to a consumption of aerosols, emissions systems, etc. The good ozone occurs at the stratospheric level which is produced and destroyed at a constant rate. This type of ozone also affects the environment except that it gradually affects us by taking a little longer to reach us.
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The picture at the right shows a diagram of ozone science. Notice all of the contributing factors which go to create smog in your area. The word "smog" is a combination of "smoke" and "fog". In the troposphere, which goes to about 10 miles, ozone is dangerous to health. However, in the stratosphere, ozone is helpful. In the stratosphere, ozone (the "ozone layer") protects us from the dangerous ultra-violet (UV) rays of the sun.
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Temperature Inversions
| The usual case on the atmosphere is that the warmer air is at or near the earth's surface and the cooler increases as you go up the troposphere. These temperature inversions usually occur during the conditions of clear, calm nights. The process happens when a reversal the layer of air which becomes cooler first and then hot. This means what an increase in temperature occurs the higher and higher up we go.
The graphic at right (click on the graphic to see full-sized) shows a graph of an inversion. Notice that the temperature gets colder as we get higher in the atmosphere, then suddenly gets warmer, then gets colder again. This is an example of a temperature inversion. |
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Mixing Heights
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Meteorologists mathematically place mixing height boxes and different geographical areas where monitors and radars are placed in order to detect weather conditions. The monitors detect all types of weather changes which might affect the ozone like wind and heat. These imaginary boxes contain a mixture of Nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxides which accumulate into ozone.
The graphic at left (click on the graphic to see full-sized) shows a picture of a column of air as it moves through a town. The column of air collects pollution and, when the sun shines, the pollution in the column of air becomes ozone. The height of the column of air is known as the mixing height. |
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